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Friday, May 28, 2010

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Rex Babin Cartoons

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Maybe we should...

Published: Thursday, May. 27, 2010

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The question they need to put to the American public is: "Is that oil really worth American blood & the lives of your boys? Is it worth fighting & dying just to keep the price of gasoline down so you can go for more joy rides?--Is it worth your boys?" Well, as far as I'm concerned, it's not worth it! Americans need the price of their oil to go up so they won't waste so much in useless car driving! Most of the cars in the U.S. go into the big cities in the morning & come home at night with only one person in each one of them. The U.S. is used to just absolutely revelling in luxury, especially the luxury of individual transportation,'Ted Rudow III,MA

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Rex Babin Cartoons

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Profiles in Courage

Published: Friday, May. 28, 2010

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But all these artificial, superficial Band-Aids the Government put on managed to stall it off a little longer. But now it's already happening in the United States, & most of the economists say they see a serious recession coming in the U.S. & involving perhaps the whole World.Ted Rudow III,MA

Thursday, May 27, 2010

One thing which this recent crisis in the Mideast should show the world is that nothing has really changed in the Mideast. There's been talk of "Peace, peace" for years now, and that's about all it's been--talk. Now sudden destruction has come upon the area, as travail upon a woman with child. It was inevitable, just like a woman going into labor when she's ready to deliver a child. The Israelis have remained the same as always. Oh, they've talked of peace, and they've thrown the Palestinians a few crumbs here and there. They've let them control their little villages and rundown cities and slums, establish their own police force to arrest their own troublemakers, pick up their own garbage, and elect their own officials to supervise all that, but it's all pretty meaningless and no skin off the Israeli nose. The Israelis didn't want to run the dumps and dungheaps they let the Palestinians have anyway; it took too much time and energy away from their other work and was too much trouble. They let the Palestinians have a few status symbols, things like their own airport and pass­ports and govern­ment buildings here and there, but a lot of good it did the Palestinians! At the first sign of trouble, the Israelis closed down their airport so the Palestinians couldn't fly out. They sealed off their cities and territories with tanks and troops so they couldn't go in or out, so what good were their passports? And they sent helicopter gunships to bombard some of their government buildings, police stations and TV stations with rockets, blasting them into oblivion. So much for symbols of Palestinian sovereignty and concessions from the Israelis! The poor Palestinians have been hoping for change for years, but there's been very little change. They may seem to control their own little towns now, if you can call their run-down collection of huts and hovels such a thing, but at the first outbreak of violence they're surrounded by Israeli tanks and snipers. Even without violence, if they want to travel from one city to another, one place to another, they pass through Israeli roadblocks and suffer all sorts of indignities in the process. Ted Rudow III,MA

Monday, May 24, 2010

Weather | Dhaka T: 30C | H: 74% Top of Form 1Bottom of Form 1The Daily Star Your Right To KnowMonday, May 24, 2010

Today's paper Front Page Editorial Metropolitan National International Op-Ed Letters Monday, May 24, 2010 Letters Robbing the poor!Ted Rudow III, MA, On e-mail As part of his budget plan, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed eliminating IHSS, the state's fastest-growing social services program, which pays caregivers to help the disabled and the frail elderly. Nearly half a million disabled Californians get subsidized home care. Without IHSS, many current clients would be forced to move to skilled-nursing centres. Nursing homes cost five times as much per IHSS client. The number of skilled-nursing-centre beds has dwindled through the years as IHSS' success has grown at helping the elderly continue living independently.I was thinking about California being on the brink and going bankrupt. They can't go on robbing the poor and helping the rich, and get by with it! And that's exactly what this California economy has been doing for years. California kept borrowing money and selling bonds and borrowing more money and all that kind of stuff. Well, people will trust you so long, and then they quit trusting your ability to ever pay it back. So if you keep living on borrowed money, there comes a day when you have to pay it back when those bonds begin to come due. These debts begin to come due with all their big high interest rates and California didn't have the money to pay them back. So we've been robbing the poor. Well that's what happened to California: It's been going on for years

As part of his budget plan, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed eliminating In-Home Supportive Services, the state’s fastest-growing social services program, which pays caregivers to help the disabled and the frail elderly. Nearly half a million disabled Californians get subsidized home care.

Without IHSS, many current clients would be forced to move to skilled nursing centers that accept Medi-Cal patients. At an average expense of $55,000 a year, nursing homes cost five times as much per IHSS client. The number of skilled-nursing center beds has dwindled through the years as IHSS success has grown at helping the elderly continue living independently.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

The present dollar-based capitalistic system is not merely going to fail, it has already failed. It's not going broke, it is broke. But they don't know what to do about it so it's just "business as usual." It could happen overnight - that's the way it happened last time: people woke up and realized their money in the bank was not worth anything, or it might not even be there at all, and they started a run on the banks! And when it happens this time, the entire economic system will collapse.

As part of his budget plan, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed eliminating In-Home Supportive Services, the state's fastest growing social services program, which pays caregivers to help the disabled and the frail elderly. Nearly half a million disabled Californians get subsidized home care.

Without the services, many current clients would be forced to move to skilled-nursing centers that accept Medi-Cal patients. At an average expense of $55,000 a year, nursing homes cost five times as much per person as an In-Home Supportive Services client. The number of skilled-nursing center beds has dwindled through the years as the service's success has grown at helping the elderly continue living independently.

I was thinking about California being on the brink and going bankrupt. They can't go on robbing the poor and helping the rich, and get away with it. And that's exactly what this California economy has been doing for years. California kept borrowing money and selling bonds, then borrowing more money and all that kind of stuff.

Well, people will trust you so long, and then they quit trusting your ability to ever pay it back. So if you keep living on borrowed money, there comes a day when you have to pay it back when those bonds begin to come due. So we've been robbing the poor.

Well that's what happened to California. It's been going on for years and now California is $20 billion in debt and going up

As part of his budget plan, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed eliminating IHSS, the state's fastest-growing social services program, which pays caregivers to help the disabled and the frail elderly.

Nearly half a million disabled Californians get subsidized home care.

Without IHSS, many current clients would be forced to move to skilled-nursing centers that accept Medi-Cal patients. At an average expense of $55,000 a year, nursing homes cost five times as much per IHSS client.

The number of skilled-nursing-center beds has dwindled through the years as IHSS's success has grown at helping the elderly continue living independently.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

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Assorted Prescriptions

Published: Sunday, May. 16, 2010

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05/16/2010

It is drugs’ connection to the spiritual realm. Psychotropic or mind-altering substances are viewed by sorcerers and others involved in the occult as a gateway, or guide, into the Spirit World. Over the years, the Grateful Dead have become almost synonymous with marijuana and LSD use. The Washington Times described the uncanny fascination they inspire in their devoted fans, “For many of the camp followers, the Dead are a religion and their lyrics a bible. It is generally accepted that the Dead are tapped into some profound LSD-inspired truth. Not surprisingly, some hallucinating ‘Deadheads’ have weaved weird and elaborate theories about God and the Universe from strands of Grateful Dead lyrics.”

It’s not surprising because the Dead themselves have acknowledged this drug-induced demonic deception. As Captain Trip, Jerry Garcia, said in their biography “Playing in the Band.” “I can’t deny that there is a moment when I’m transformed, when all of a sudden God is speaking through my strings,” (“Playing in the Band,” David Gans and Peter Simon). I began taking drugs and reading from mystical books at University of California at Berkeley but they never satisfied my soul. I realize that it was more a spiritual thing rather than a physical things. It lead me to pursue a degree in Education counseling at San Jose State University with classes in Drug and Alcohol counseling. I work as a Music Therapist at the VA Hospital in Menlo Park for 17 years and three years at James RanchTed Rudow III,MA

Saturday, May 15, 2010

62nd anniversaryby Ted Rudow III,MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com ) Saturday May 15th, 2010Palestinians marked on Friday the 62nd anniversary of the Nakba, the “catastrophe” of Israel’s creation, demanding the right of return of hundreds of thousands driven from their homes. Protests were staged in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip and in Lebanon, home to around 400,000 Palestinian refugees, as chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat blasted Israel for its “disregard of international law.” Israeli governments have refused to allow Palestinian refugees to return to homes they fled in 1948 over fears a massive return would threaten the state of Israel and its 5.7 million Jewish population. The Israelis provoke the Palestinians to violence, but they can't strike back very easily against the troops and tanks that surround their cities and patrol their roads. So Palestinians send suicide bombers inside Israel to inflict horrible destruction on Israeli civilians. That destruction is anything but silent! Scenes of Israeli suffering, carnage and death fill TV screens around the world and make the front pages of major papers. Israel then has its justification for more open attacks on Palestinian areas to “stop the suicide bombers” and “round up the militants,” and they go further and further in their retaliation, destroying as much as they can. Naturally, since these are “military operations,” the cameras are banned. If any atrocities happen to occur, there's no proof. Palestinians are wounded or killed, their houses and cities are crushed, their government institutions are obliterated, their leaders are humiliated. All that just perpetuates Palestinian rage and revenge attacks. But when Palestinians strike back at Israeli civilians with suicide bombings, these open attacks are used against them, both in the media and by the Israeli military, which launches devastating counterattacks where they do their dirty work in secret! The open attacks by Palestinians produce worse counterattacks by the Israelis and more secret destruction, which produces more open attacks by the Palestinians. So the vicious cycle goes on, and it's one the Palestinians are losing, as they're being ground down, humiliated, and destroyed in every way possible. Ted Rudow III,MA

Dear Editor: As part of his budget plan, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed eliminating In-Home Supportive Services, the state's fastest growing social services program, which pays caregivers to help the disabled and the frail elderly. Nearly half a million disabled Californians get subsidized home care.Without the services, many current clients would be forced to move to skilled-nursing centers that accept Medi-Cal patients. At an average expense of $55,000 a year, nursing homes cost five times as much per person as an In-Home Supportive Services client. The number of skilled-nursing center beds has dwindled through the years as the service's success has grown at helping the elderly continue living independently.I was thinking about California being on the brink and going bankrupt. They can't go on robbing the poor and helping the rich, and get away with it. And that's exactly what this California economy has been doing for years. California kept borrowing money and selling bonds, then borrowing more money and all that kind of stuff. Well, people will trust you so long, and then they quit trusting your ability to ever pay it back. So if you keep living on borrowed money, there comes a day when you have to pay it back when those bonds begin to come due. So we've been robbing the poor. Well that's what happened to California. It's been going on for years and now California is $20 billion in debt and going up.Ted Rudow III,MAPalo Alto

Friday, May 14, 2010

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Reader's feedback published on 15/05/2010

The Daily Star is pleased to provide a forum for debate on a range of subjects, from local cultural activities to international politics. Dozens, sometimes even hundreds, of letters fall into the editor’s mailbox daily. In order to keep the letters timely, The Daily Star generally produces a special letters section. When the influx of letters is particularly large, extra space is made available accordingly.If you would like to submit a letter for publication, please remember to include your full name (first and last) and address, including city. The Daily Star typically only publishes letters under 400 words, and these are subject to editing. The Daily Star will not acknowledge unsolicited submissions.

The present dollar-based capitalistic system is not merely going to fail, and not just failing, it has already failed. It’s not going broke, it is already broke and already bankrupt. But they don’t know what to do about it so they’re just going on “business as usual,” saying: “Maybe if we shut our eyes, it will go away. If we don’t look at it, if we stick our heads in the sand, maybe it won’t happen!” It could happen overnight! That’s the way it happened last time: The people suddenly woke up and realized that their money in the bank was not worth anything, or it might not even be there at all, and they started a run on the banks. And when it happens this time, the entire economic system will collapse. It will be the greatest economic crash, depression, social and political cataclysm in all of world history!

Sign In | Register Now | PressClub Site HelpMy Account | Sign Out | PressClub Site Help Rex Babin Cartoons

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Bad News

Published: Friday, May. 14, 2010

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05/14/2010

As part of his budget plan, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed eliminating IHSS, the state's fastest-growing social services program, which pays caregivers to help the disabled and the frail elderly. Nearly half a million disabled Californians, get subsidized home care. Without IHSS, many current clients would be forced to move to skilled-nursing centers that accept Medi-Cal patients. At an average expense of $55,000 a year, nursing homes cost five times as much per IHSS client.The number of skilled-nursing-center beds has dwindled through the years as IHSS' success has grown at helping the elderly continue living independently.I was thinking about California being on the brink and going bankrupt. They can't go on robbing the poor and helping the rich, and get by with it! And that's exactly what this California economy has been doing for years. California kept borrowing money and selling bonds borrowing more money and all that kind of stuff. Well, people will trust you so long, and then they quit trusting your ability to ever pay it back. So if you keep living on borrowed money, there comes a day when you have to pay it back when those bonds begin to come due. These debts begin to come due with all their big high interest rates and California didn't have the money to pay them back.So we've been robbing the poor. Well that's what happened to California: It's been going on for years until now Caifornia billions and billions of dollars in debt.Ted Rudow III,MA

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Palestine | U.S.Suckersby Ted Rudow III,MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com ) Wednesday May 12th, 2010 They've been suckers too long of the U.S. & Israel, & now even Egypt has in a way been traitorous to them by making peace with their major enemies, Israel & the U.S., & that is never going to get them their freedom nor their autonomy or self-government.So today the Palestinians look to the North & the East for their salvation, toward Russia. They see the U.S. as a declining World power, Russia as an ascending World power, & that their only hope is in Russia. the Palestinians look toward Russia for help. Palestinians believing the U.S. & Israel would kept their word & their promises--which they're not going to keep--that they would somehow give the Palestinians their freedom & their own autonomous government & so on. Which they're not going to do! Ted Rudow III,MA

Mother's Day really was in its origin an antiwar day, an antiwar statement. Julia Ward Howe was sickened by what had happened during the Civil War, the loss of life, the carnage, and she created Mother's Day as a call for women all over the world to come together and create ways of protesting war, of making a kind of alternate government that could finally do away with war as an acceptable way of solving conflict. Countries used to go to war just for pride over some incident because they were offended or one king made a bad remark about another king.

But in modern years, recent years, they go to war for commercial reasons, they're trade wars. Nearly every one of America's wars were for some kind of trade advantage or money or for territory-which of course were always fought under different excuses, even as far back as the Civil War. Before every war, there's a long period of mental conditioning and psychological preparation. You never saw how self-righteous nations can get just before a war! So righteous and so convinced that they are right and the other fellow's the criminal, the devil who needs to be conquered! "FROM WHENCE COME WARS?"

Monday, May 10, 2010

As usualby Ted Rudow III,MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com ) Monday May 10th, 2010 The prime minister has clarified, over the whole process, that building and planning in Jerusalem will continue as usual, exactly as it has under all governments of Israel in the last 43 years, and no Israeli commitments have been given on this issue,”an official close to Netanyahu said in a statement.The Israeli official said that while no commitments have been given, Netanyahu had informed the US that under normal planning procedures it would take several years before any construction would start." It doesn't matter obviously,to those Israeli! It doesn't matter that two million poor Palestinians are kicked out of their own homes and their own country and have nothing and nowhere to go and nowhere to live and nothing to eat, as long as the [Israelis] get what they want! If the Palestinians try to retaliate, try to strike back,"Oh, they're terrorists!"--Let's say I'm a gunman and I rob you. You scream and holler because I robbed you, of course. You take your fist and you sock me back because I robbed you. But then I the real robber scream and holler to the whole world: "He hit me, he hit me, he hit me! I want your sympathy! This guy's a terrorist! All I was doing was robbing him at the point of a gun and he hit me back! It isn't fair!" Ted Rudow III,MA

Friday, May 07, 2010

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Reader's feedback published on 08/05/2010The Daily Star is pleased to provide a forum for debate on a range of subjects, from local cultural activities to international politics. Dozens, sometimes even hundreds, of letters fall into the editor’s mailbox daily. In order to keep the letters timely, The Daily Star generally produces a special letters section. When the influx of letters is particularly large, extra space is made available accordingly.If you would like to submit a letter for publication, please remember to include your full name (first and last) and address, including city. The Daily Star typically only publishes letters under 400 words, and these are subject to editing. The Daily Star will not acknowledge unsolicited submissions.

Unstable global financial markets, waves of bankruptcy, deepening unemployment, economic busts, markets plunging, collapsing consumer confidence, banking systems crashing “it does not seem that there is any place on earth immune from the financial crisis.” Can someone save the world from a global economic meltdown? Who has the wisdom to deal with the crisis? As economies crumble, poverty soars, and financial gloom spreads like wildfire, one thing is certain: Never before has there been such a need for someone to step up to the world’s economic helm. The repercussions of economic globalization are bigger than anyone ever imagined. The effect that one nation’s financial who have on others and ultimately the rest of the world is unprecedented. There’s a need for someone to man the controls, someone who can rescue the world from further turmoil. Who will be able to rescue the world from this mess Where have all the leaders gone? Who is capable? The capitalistic financiers of Europe have got a whole lot invested in this America, and they don’t want to lose it. The European money boys are left holding her bag full of fewer dollars. If they keep trying to support her, they’re going to go bankrupt! The infamous global financial system cryptically spoken of in the Bible’s book of Revelation as the “Mark of the Beast” without which no one will be able to buy or sell is coming closer to inception every day. Crises like this current one make people yearn for the economic stability that the framers of this new system will proclaim as their aim. The value of the new digital money will be guaranteed, but will come with a price, and that is your allegiance to the global regime that backs it. Your money may seem safe, but it will cost you as much as your soul.

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Cheney's oil connections

Editor,

The oil well spewing crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico didn't have a remote-control shut-off switch used in two other major oil-producing nations as last-resort protection against underwater spills.

The lack of the device, called an acoustic switch, could amplify concerns over the environmental impact of offshore drilling after the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig last week.

Cheney's energy task force — the secretive one he wouldn't say much about publicly — decided that the switches, which cost $500,000, were too much a burden on the industry. But then again, maybe they are not. Regulatory decisions have consequences all the time, and the people who made them should be asked to justify their decisions in a democracy. Halliburton is involved, too.

The Los Angeles Times reports that "BP contracted Dick Cheney's old company to cement the deepwater drill hole."

Cheney himself corrupts the very foundation of government itself by illegally boring into the private affairs of its citizens and scandalously destroying their personal freedoms, while at the same time he tries to hide his evil-doing with hush money, colossal cover-up, and the most flagrant whitewashing in Washington White House history as it is now born out.

The oil well spewing crude into the Gulf of Mexico didn't have a remote-control shutoff switch used in two other major oil-producing nations as last-resort protection against underwater spills. The lack of the device, called an acoustic switch, could amplify concerns over the environmental impact of offshore drilling after the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig last week.

Dick Cheney's energy task force — the secretive one he didn't say much about publicly — decided the switches, which cost $500,000, were too much of a burden on the industry. But then again, maybe it's not. Regulatory decisions have consequences all the time, and the people who make them should be asked to justify their decisions in a democracy. Halliburton is involved, too. The Los Angeles Times reports that "BP contracted Dick Cheney's old company to cement the deepwater drill hole."

Cheney, with his personal Gestapo and loyal stormtroopers, corrupts the very foundation of government by illegally boring into the private affairs of its citizens and scandalously destroying their personal freedoms, while at the same time he tries to hide his evil doings with hush money, colossal cover-ups and the most flagrant whitewashing in White House history, as is now borne outTed Rudow III,MA

Abstract:On Monday, Gov. Schwarzenegger announced he will no longer be pursuing an expansion in offshore drilling along the California coast.

Schwarzenegger said the recent oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico was the reason for his decision, according to the Associated Press....

Cheney and gushing oil

Dear Editor: The oil well spewing crude into the Gulf of Mexico didn't have a remote-control shutoff switch used in two other major oil-producing nations as last-resort protection against underwater spills. The lack of the device, called an acoustic switch, could amplify concerns over the environmental impact of offshore drilling after the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig last week.

Dick Cheney's energy task force -- the secretive one he didn't say much about publicly -- decided the switches, which cost $500,000, were too much of a burden on the industry. But then again, maybe it's not. Regulatory decisions have consequences all the time, and the people who make them should be asked to justify their decisions in a democracy. Halliburton is involved, too. The Los Angeles Times reports that "BP contracted Dick Cheney's old company to cement the deepwater drill hole."

Cheney, with his personal Gestapo and loyal stormtroopers, corrupts the very foundation of government by illegally boring into the private affairs of its citizens and scandalously destroying their personal freedoms, while at the same time he tries to hide his evil doings with hush money, colossal cover-ups and the most flagrant whitewashing in White House history, as is now borne out. Ted Rudow III,MA Class of 1996

Abstract:Yesterday marked the 40th anniversary of the Kent State University massacre.

About 20 people attended an opening ceremony commemorating the university massacre and "The Art of Protest" exhibit on display in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library.

The ceremony was to commemorate the massacre, which took place in 1970, said Dannelle Moon, associate librarian....

The Kent State massacre occurred, when National Guardsmen shot & killed four students demonstrating against the Vietnam War. They was also beginning to show a bias from Left to Right by tough, inexorable, prosecution with severity against the youth of America in everything from minor drug offenses to conspiracy to overthrow the Government or commit violence and riots while permitting their Rightist murderers to go free in such atrocious cases as Jackson State, etc. The ridiculousness of the prosecution of Father Berrigan and his associates for conspiracy just because they discussed what they'd like to do to the Government as a protest against Nixon warmongering policies really capped the climax! Like Kent State and Chicago, Ruby Ridge and Waco have become code words for government aggression. "They" without an antecedent usually means government officials, politicians, journalists and others who are part of the power elite. Bureaucrats are called "public masters" instead of public servants. Ted Rudow III,MA Class of 1996

Dear Editor: The oil well spewing crude into the Gulf of Mexico didn't have a remote-control shutoff switch used in two other major oil-producing nations as last-resort protection against underwater spills. The lack of the device, called an acoustic switch, could amplify concerns over the environmental impact of offshore drilling after the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig last week.

Dick Cheney's energy task force — the secretive one he didn't say much about publicly — decided the switches, which cost $500,000, were too much of a burden on the industry. But then again, maybe it's not. Regulatory decisions have consequences all the time, and the people who make them should be asked to justify their decisions in a democracy. Halliburton is involved, too. The Los Angeles Times reports that "BP contracted Dick Cheney's old company to cement the deepwater drill hole."

Cheney, with his personal Gestapo and loyal stormtroopers, corrupts the very foundation of government by illegally boring into the private affairs of its citizens and scandalously destroying their personal freedoms, while at the same time he tries to hide his evil doings with hush money, colossal cover-ups and the most flagrant whitewashing in White House history, as is now borne out.

Jack Rasmus returns to Other Voices to discuss his just-published new book, Epic Recession: Prelude to Global Depression. The book reveals the deep origins of the current economic crisis, explains why current Obama policies have failed, and offers an alternative, comprehensive 28 point program for economic recovery.

Jack explains how the current crisis is similar to prior Epic Recessions in the U.S., in 1907-1914 and 1929-1931, and quite unlike 'normal' recessions since 1945. Jack describes how the current crisis is neither a full-blown depression nor a short-lived contraction followed by a swift return to growth, but a crisis followed by a period of extended stagnation that may yet slip into a classic depression.

Developing a new theory of its causes and evolution that departs from mainstream economic analysis, Jack argues that preventing a possible descent into depression will require a basic restructuring the U.S. economy through a massive job creation program, a nationalizing of residential housing and consumer credit markets, a fundamental restructuring of the tax system, a new type of Federal Reserve and banking structure, and measures that restore a long term redistribution of income.

I phone up and quoted"For thy merchants were the great men of the Earth, and by thy sorceries (the deceitfulness of riches and the witchcraft of wealth) were all nations deceived," says the Book of Revelation, 18,23b. American affluence is the dream of every country the world over, and her luxuries, sins and violence, from her music to her crimes, are imitated by nations around the world.

The oil well spewing crude into the Gulf of Mexico didn't have a remote-control shut-off switch used in two other major oil-producing nations as last-resort protection against underwater spills. The lack of the device, called an acoustic switch, could amplify concerns over the environmental impact of offshore drilling after the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig last week...Cheney's energy task force - the secretive one that he wouldn't say much about publicly - that decided that the switches, which cost $500,000, were too much a burden on the industry. But then again, maybe it's not. Regulatory decisions have consequences all the time, and the people who made them should be asked to justify their decisions in a democracy. Halliburton is involved, too! The Los Angeles Times reports that "BP contracted Dick Cheney's old company to cement the deepwater drill hole." Cheney himself, with his personal Gestapo, loyal storm troopers and nationwide political, corrupts the very foundation of government itself by illegally boring into the private affairs of its citizens and scandalously destroying their personal freedoms, while at the same time he tries to hide his evil-doing with hush money, colossal cover-up, and the most flagrant whitewashing in Washington White House history as it now born out!Ted Rudow III,MA

This oligarchy consists of six megabanks Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo. They have assets equivalent to 60 percent of our gross national product.

And to put this in perspective, in the mid-1990s these six banks or their predecessors, since there have been a lot of mergers, had less than 20 percent. Their assets were less than 20 percent of the gross national product.

They did sorceries to take a lot of these loans and package them up into very complex "collateralized debt obligations" and other risky "financial derivatives" and then sell them to others as investments in the hopes the loans would one day be repaid. Banks and other investors all over the world bought and sold these things that they knew probably had no real value. Does this sound mad to you? It did to many at first, but somehow ? like the old tale of the emperor's new clothes ? enough investors and financiers thought they were exquisite, and eventually nearly everyone began to think it was economic wisdom.

"For thy merchants were the great men of the Earth, and by thy sorceries (the deceitfulness of riches and the witchcraft of wealth) were all nations deceived," says the Book of Revelation, 18,23b. American affluence is the dream of every country the world over, and her luxuries, sins and violence, from her music to her crimes, are imitated by nations around the world.Ted Rudow III,MA